Aaron Simpson nearly set on move to welterweight after UFC on FUEL TV 1 loss

After a loss to Ronny Markes (13-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) on Wednesday at UFC on FUEL TV 1, Simpson (11-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) said he’s tired of being undersized at middleweight.

“I’ve been thinking about it over the last year and a half,” the 37-year-old today told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “Everybody I fight is cutting from 220 (pounds).”

UFC on FUEL TV 1 took place at Omaha Civic Auditorium in Omaha, Neb. Simpson vs. Markes served as part of the event’s main card, which aired on FUEL TV following prelims on Facebook.

The noticeably bulky Markes pinned Simpson on the cage several times during the three-round fight, which ended in a split decision for the Brazilian.

Simpson, who saw a three-fight win streak broken, said he never gets heavier than 200 pounds.

“There were times I couldn’t budge,” he said. “[Markes] had his shoulder buried in my chest, and I couldn’t move him. And I can defend a lot of people’s takedowns and everything, and it was just one of those deals where that really dwarfed me.”

A positive Simpson took from the fight was the power in his punches, which dropped Markes in the first round. However, that advantage was muted by his size deficit.

“I can hit those guys hard, but if a guy puts you against the cage, it drains you,” he said.

Now, Simpson plans to get his body fat tested to see whether a move to 170 pounds is medically possible. Then he’ll make a test cut if he gets the green light. He hasn’t seen the number on the scale since 1993.

While many criticized Markes for using his bulk to avoid a fight, Simpson isn’t upset about the judges’ decision.

“I should have finished him in the first, so I deserve to lose if I didn’t go out there and do it,” he said. “I don’t know that he did a whole lot of damage on me, but you lose, you always think you could have done more.”

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